Is Francesca Bridgerton asexual? Character explained

While Bridgerton Season 3 may be all about Penelope and Colin’s steamy friends-to-lovers story, the spotlight has also been shone on Francesca Bridgerton.

Francesca has stolen the spotlight this season with her own story on the quest for a partner. But unlike her love-matched older siblings, she’s not privy to dancing at the grand balls, courting, or appealing to the woes of marriage.

While Penelope and Collin’s love story begins to take place, Francesca’s story also blossoms. But it has raised many questions about her and her demeanor in the first half of the third season, especially her interactions with others and her newfound suitor.

Is it as simple as Francesca being misunderstood? Is she an asexual? On the spectrum? How does she feel about love? Or is Francesca simply a young woman who is different from the others?

Is Francesca Bridgerton autistic?

This question is difficult to answer simply because no one knows. The original books by Julia Quinn make no mention of Francesca being autistic in any way.

A fan on X/Twitter commented that some of her actions in the first episodes are “ADHD coded,” and some saw similarities with their own experiences.

One of them is how Francesca becomes incredibly bothered by someone playing a piece of music with the wrong note and beat.

Thinking how John and Francesca are so autistic and ADHD coded. That scene between Fran and John where she tells him her thoughts on a musical piece and John quickly marches away as he looks at the player and later on we find out why he did that and I'm like…baby boy 🥹

— ¯_(ツ)_/¯ (@messsolitude) May 16, 2024

“And Fran’s literal look of PAIN as she listened to that musical piece being played all wrong and how she just started rambling her thoughts a mile a minute. And how both she and John NEED quiet time, and how they are easily overstimulated. My god, the coding is EATING,” said the fan.

Francesca is also much more reserved than her siblings. She’s quiet, less boastful, and would rather spend her time playing pianoforte. Francesca also becomes increasingly flustered when approached by suitors and having to play along with the marriage mart.

Is Francesca Bridgerton asexual?

Die-hard Bridgerton book fans would know that Francesca is not considered asexual.

He Was Wicked is considered one of the most sexually explicit books in the series, and proves that Francesca is sexually knowledgeable. So why is she being questioned as being asexual in Bridgerton Season 3?

This likely comes from how Francesca presents herself during the courting season. While appealing to her mother and the queen by taking part in the festivities, she has no real enthusiasm for it.

To her, it’s simply another day. She tells her mother that a love match like her mother and father’s is rare and likely won’t happen.

Hannah Dodd explained to Tudum, “I think the difference is that she’s not excited about it. She’s not spent her entire life dreaming about what her wedding day will look like and what her husband’s going to be. She just knows it’s her time and this is part of life, and here we go.”

It’s more likely that Francesca is an introvert than asexual. She craves alone time from her loud siblings and doesn’t want a complex whirlwind story, which explains why she finds so much comfort in John Stirling.

He doesn’t push her beyond her boundaries or bombard her with questions like other suitors. She’s also not portrayed as having sexual fantasies toward John yet and just enjoys his company.

In one scene, he visits her at her home and simply sits with her in silence. Something they both immensely enjoy. Quiet and each other’s company.

Who is Francesca Bridgerton’s first husband?

Francesca’s first husband is John Stirling, as revealed in Bridgerton Season 3.

Netflix

Before the release of Bridgerton Season 3, many fans accurately guessed that Francesca would see the start of her first love story. This was largely based on her starting to wear tweed, a fabric that hails from Scotland, where her first husband, John Stirling, is from.

In her book storyline, Francesca marries John, the Earl of Kilmartin. Not much is actually known about John, but he’s also quiet and reserved like Francesca. Season 3 shows them forming an easy bond amid the hustle and bustle of the courting season.

Victor Alli, who plays John, told Tatler, “He’s quite private but he has a sense of self. He’s quite charming, he has a self-depreciating sense of humour.”

But fans aren’t ready for Francesca’s full love story. While John is her first husband, he’s not her last. In the books, John dies from a brain aneurysm, and Michael becomes the new Earl.

Because she had been married to John, Michael and Francesca had become friends. They put off their feelings for each other due to John’s death, but ultimately, love flourishes, and they marry.

Where is Francesca Bridgerton from?

Like the rest of the Bridgerton clan, Francesca hails from Regency-era London, with their family home in the city on the edge of Greenwich Park.

One of the big caveats of the Netflix series is its location. Set in London, the drama of a bustling city adds richness to the storylines. Not to mention that the Bridgertons have close ties to the Queen herself and the luxury of the era.

But where is actor Hannah Dodd from? The 29-year-old English actor was born in Colchester, England and got her start at age 16 when she was signed to Select Model Management. In 2017, she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Dance from the London Studio Centre.

Besides Bridgerton, Dodd starred in Anatomy of a Scandal as Young Sophie Whitehouse and played Sandra in Eternals. In Enola Holmes 2, she played Sarah Chapman / Cicely.

Francesca Bridgerton recast in Season 3 explained

Bridgerton fans would know that Dodd was not the original actor who played Francesca in the two prior seasons of the Netflix series. Dodd took over the role from Ruby Stokes, who exited the series to star as Lucy Carlyle in the Netflix series Lockwood & Co.

In Bridgerton Season 2, many noted that Francesca was absent for many scenes under the explanation that she was away visiting a relative. In reality, Stokes was unable to appear as her Bridgerton character due to scheduling conflicts filming Lockwood & Co.

Stokes’s role as Lucy was short-lived when Netflix announced the series was canceled after the first season. By then, Dodd had been cast as her replacement with Season 3 already concluding their filming schedule.

Bridgerton Season 3 Part 1 is available to stream on Netflix, with Part to release on June 13, 2024. You can read up on why the season cut out a major book character, how rich Penelope is, details on Season 4, and read up on all the new TV series on streaming.